Michael Ballaban

VLN racing driver Wolf Silvester died from an apparent heart attack during a race today at the Nurburgring. He was 55.

The VLN, which is a racing series for both amateurs and professionals primarily based at the track in Germany, issued this statement:

The third round of the VLN endurance racing championship at the Nürburgring was stopped due to the death of ‘Wolf Silvester’, participant in the event, presumably as a consequence of health problems.

According to the statements made by the safety marshals, Silvester was driving on the track with his Opel Astra OPC apparently without having any more control over the car which then stopped between post 178 and 179 (access Schwalbenschwanz). The marshals reported to Race Control that the driver was sitting into the car, motionless. The rescue team, arriving at the site immediately after the report had been received, immediately initiated rescue measures and attempted to resuscitate the 55 years old driver. The attempts were continuously carried on during the transport to the Medical Centre at the circuit where the Chief Medical Officer finally had to testify the death due to an internal medical background.

Wolf Silvester who has been a regular participant in the VLN for many years has gained the endurance racing championship title in the years 2006 and 2010. “We are deeply concerned and our thoughts are with his family”, says VLN Chairman Rolf Krimpmann (Gladbeck/ Germany).

The results of the third race which was won by Ferdinand and Johannes Stuck (Munich) together with Frank Stippler (Bad Münstereifel/ Germany) in the Audi R8 LMS ultra entered by Phoenix Racing became rather an irrelevant fact under the given circumstances.

Along with the death of Allan Simonsen, this is rapidly shaping up to be a very sad day in motorsport.